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Thursday, June 11, 2015

Accidents

Tony Evans tells the story about the cowboy who
applied for health insurance. The agent routinely asked him, “Have you ever had
any accidents?” The cowboy replied, “Well, no, I’ve not had any accidents. I
was bitten by a rattlesnake once, and a horse did kick me in the ribs. That
laid me up for a while, but I haven’t had any accidents.” The agent said, “Wait
a minute. I’m confused. A rattlesnake bit you, and a horse kicked you. Weren’t
those accidents?” “No, they did that on purpose.”

Now that makes us laugh,
but honestly accidents do happen.

There is a difference between
accidents, mistakes, and sin. Accidents happen unexpectedly and unintentionally.
Mistakes usually occur by judgment errors, misinterpretations, or by not paying
attention to details. Sin occurs when we disobey the moral and Biblical
instructions put forth in the Holy Bible.

﻿﻿﻿

Bicycle racks in front of Den Haag Central Station, The Hague, The Netherlands

Sometimes
accidents kill. If you are reading this blog and you have experienced that type
of accident with someone you know and love, I am so sorry. Three weeks ago my nephew’s good friend Adam was
hit by a car when the driver failed to yield to the motorcycle he was on - killing
him. My nephew was speechless that something like that could have been so
easily preventable. We just don’t have the words for it.

But, today we are going to look at suffering and pain from the
viewpoint of accidents, i.e. running into a concrete wall during basketball
practice, being hit by lightning, electrical accidents. We are going to look at
accidents that fortunately are not unto death. We must first understand that accidents
do happen! They can happen because of risky behavior or they can happen without
warning - with or without any ability on our part to avoid them. While we or a
loved one may be in unrelenting or searing pain, the results are left in God’s
hands. We know this because Jeremiah says, "For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcomes."

Nowhere in the Bible
does it say that we will be free from accidents. Mistakes and sins we can
avoid, but not accidents. Sometimes accidents can’t be explained. Other times
they are for a purpose - to test our faith – to keep us from evil – to increase
our character - to help someone else in their faith walk.

A few years ago The Bama Group Research did a survey
asking people what they would like to ask God. The number one question was that
people wanted to ask God is “Why He allows pain and suffering in this world.”
People usually ask that question when they are in the midst of a crisis
situation or they are philosophically looking for an answer to the question. Either
way, the question is asked frequently.

As a believer, when you
are encountering pain and suffering due to an accident, how should you react to
it?

-Start by having others pray for you. You may need to have a family
member or friend contact believers to pray for you. [You may or may not be in
any condition yourself to be praying at this point and that is okay.] Having
others pray for you is importance for two reasons. Others are encouraged to
enter a season of prayer, which they may or may not have been utilizing in
their Christian walk. And secondly, God hears the healing prayers of the
righteous. On a practical note, I love
the phrase I have heard by Aaron Armstrong in Blogging Theologically. He says, “If any among you are sick, pray
and get them to a doctor.”

-Recognize that Jesus understands our pain, because he suffered
himself.

-Thank God for the strength to keep going – hour by hour, day by
day, week by week, or month by month.

-Work hard NOT to become like King Ahaz in the Old Testament whose
distress made him become more unfaithful the Lord. (2 Chronicles 28:22)

-Recognize that God allows everything for his glory.

During and after a time
of pain and suffering, many have said they have become more confident in their walk
with the Lord and they feel a deeper compassion towards people. When explaining
the Godly results of suffering, Mary J. Yerkes states it best in her article When We Suffer: A Biblical Perspective on
Chronic Pain and Illness. Yerkes states:

Let’s all try
to look at accidents in this way from now on. As I mentioned accidents
will happen. Your child may fall off a balance beam and break their arm; you
may swallow some money; or you may flip your bike doing wheelies. Whatever it
is, let’s remember that God knows what has happened and He is there to get you
through your pain, and to show you His intended purposes.

God bless
you.Patti
Greene

Bible Verses:

For
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing
with the glory that is to be revealed to us.Romans
8:18 ESVResist
him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being
experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have
suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his
eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and
establish you.1 Peter
5:9-10 ESV

Not
only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces
endurance,and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been
poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans
5:3-5 ESV

Quotations:

As I look
back over fifty years of ministry, I recall innumerable tests, trials and times
of crushing pain. But through it all, the Lord has proven faithful, loving, and
totally true to all his promises.

David Wilkerson

I am not a
theologian or a scholar, but I am very aware of the fact that pain is necessary
to all of us. In my own life, I think I can honestly say that out of the
deepest pain has come the strongest conviction of the presence of God and the
love of God.

Elizabeth Elliot

God never
allows pain without a purpose in the lives of His children. He never allows
Satan, [n]or circumstances, [n]or any ill-intending person to afflict us unless
He uses that affliction for our good. God never wastes pain. He always causes
it to work together for our ultimate good, the good of conforming us more to
the likeness of His Son (See Romans 8:28-29).

Jerry Bridges

Prayer:

Dear
Lord, Give refuge and strength to me (or a loved one) as I (she/he) have
encountered a difficult blow leading to tremendous pain and suffering. You
alone are my fortress and my rock. Be my comfort. Let me see light soon. Heal
me. Show me the purpose in my suffering. When I am healed, let me be used by
YOU in a new and mighty way. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

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Books by Patti Londa Greene

Awaken
Me: a devotional prayer journal

God,
It’s Me: 181 Days for Young Adults to Become Passionate about Prayer and Bible
Study